1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a seat assembly for an automotive vehicle. More particularly, the invention relates to a seat assembly having a linkage system for automatically moving a seat cushion downward and forward and translating a seatback downward and rearward in response to pivoting the seatback between an upright position and a folded position.
2. Description of Related Art
Automotive vehicles include one or more seat assemblies for supporting seat occupants within a passenger compartment of the vehicle. Typically, seat assemblies include a generally horizontal seat cushion and a generally vertical seatback. It is well known in the seating art to provide a stowable seat assembly movable between a seating position for supporting the seat occupant above the floor and a stowed position lying flat against the floor, or nested within a recess formed in the floor.
In such stowable seat assemblies, the seatback is normally pivotally coupled to the seat cushion at a seatback pivot located between a lower end of the seatback and a rearward end of the seat cushion. The seatback pivot allows the seatback to pivot between a generally upright position and a folded position overlying the seat cushion. The seat cushion often includes a four-bar-linkage or front and rear legs extending between the seat cushion and the floor of the vehicle for moving the seat cushion between a raised position spaced above the floor and a lowered position resting along the floor. The seatback defines a load floor when the seat assembly is in the stowed position.
When such stowable seat assemblies are in a second or third row, behind a forward seat, an interference condition is often created when folding the seatback forward. Specifically, the seatback cannot pivot between the upright position and the folded position without an upper end of the seatback contacting the forward seat. This interference condition is magnified by federal motor vehicle safety standards, such as FMVSS 202a, which create high seatback height requirements. In addition, with the seatback pivotally coupled to the seat cushion at the seatback pivot, the load floor height is determined by the amount the seat cushion is lowered toward the floor.
It is therefore desirable to provide a mechanism or linkage system which lowers the seatback pivot such that the seatback is at a predetermined load floor height when the seat assembly is in the stowed position. It is also desirable that the linkage system translates the seatback pivot rearward such that the upper end of the seatback clears a forward seat as the seatback moves between the upright position and the folded position. It is further desirable that this motion be done while lowering the seat cushion.